Re-listening to all these early Aphex releases, you realise just how prolific an artist he was. The first Joyrex EP was an anonymous looking slab of wax, attributed to ‘Caustic Window’; the first Richard D James release to appear on the label he set up with Grant Wilson-Claridge, Rephlex Records.
Rephlex was originally set up with the manifesto of ‘promoting innovation in the dynamics of acid music’, to prove that British dance music could be just as original and experimental, as the innovators in Chicago house and Detroit Techno who’d had such a huge influence at the time.
I haven’t listened to any of these tracks in years, so replaying them has been a nice trip down memory lane. (Not to 1992 when they came out, but to the early 00s when I first immersed myself in this music, whereupon a lot of illegally downloaded mp3s may have been consumed).
This EP contains what’s now becoming James’ trademark mixture of harsh industrial techno and beautiful lush melodies (although not yet on the same track).
The title track is a speedy acid techno stomper. Despite the inhuman nature of the sounds, there’s something organic and free-flowing – and unmistakably Aphex – in the way the beat seems to speed up and slow down, and the rhythmic cadence feels as though drummed by a human player rather than programmed on a black box.
Popcorn is a fairly straight-up cover of the proto-electronic classic of the same name, with the famous moog synth line largely unchanged, albeit with a chunky breakbeat undercarriage.
But by far and away the best are Cordialatron and Italic Eyeball. The first is pure rave-bliss, with a gliding melody and chiming synths that make me imagine soaring above the English countryside on a sunny day. The latter is on a much spookier and more ethereal tip, with a tribal beat, heavy bassline and reversed sample of Julie Andrews sounding like ghostly incantation. The track is all bass and high-end, and no midrange, leaving your brain free to wander in the space.
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